By Bill J The hardest thing about letting go of cherished beliefs is the reality that you are now responsible for your life. There isn't a god trying to guide you toward his/her will. It's very difficult for most people to give up what gave them definition. I would like Christians to understand that every former Christian on this site made a tremendous and courageous decision to leave something very near and dear to them. Most if not all of them studies, prayed and gave their lives to serve god. Then they realized, for whatever reason, and there are many, that Christianity is not real. They began to leave their cocoon and look beyond the subtle and not so subtle brainwashing that had happened to them. Once you get into arguments about the bible and god you will be tempted to forget that this isn’t just about what you believe. It will become personal and a quest to prove that you could not have been duped or fooled. It is very hard for the Christian to stop and put themselves in...

Sent in by Michael Z There is a lot of anguish expressed on this, and other sites like it, by sobbing Christians on the edge. The common thread is that they can't leave the Bibles or god will not exist. Maybe admitting that "what is at the core of existence is beyond our grasp" would be a good start for your recovery from this addiction. THE BIBLE The Bible, especially the Old Testament, is at the core of most issues. The Old Testament was written in the early hours of civilization by primitive humans. Do not the needs of the “God of the Hebrews” parallel the needs of any earthly despot of that time? Kneel humbly at my feet or I will kill you! Disobey me and I will kill you. Speak badly of me and I will kill you! Would a perfect, almighty and munificent supernatural being need the praise of select tribe of primitive peasants to exist? Would a perfect, almighty and munificent supernatural being pick one group over another? We call that racial-ethnic prejudice today. Would...

By Brother Jeff Adapted from The Lordship of Christ . In the Book of Myths, Jesus of Nazareth has received many titles. He is called the Kryasst, Son of the Holy Farter, Son of Man, Slaver, and Messiah. He has also been called "Lard." Unlike many of the other terms given to Jesus, the term Lard is relatively common and as such its meaning is often taken for granted. But what does the Lardship of Kryasst actually mean? Jesus Himself gives the first inkling into the significance of being called Lard when He addresses a great multitude of people along with His disciples in the plain, "Why do you call me, 'Lard, Lard,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46). If anyone recognizes Jesus Kryasst as his or her Lard, then the first requirement from such a person is to inhale by faith the Gas of Obedience. This holy gas is offered to Jesus Kryasst because of the authority that was magically granted to Him. Jesus said, as He blasted off for His magic throne in the Sky ...

By Alex This (for want of a better word) essay is about something that I have believed for a long time, but which recently has taken over a large portion of my private time. I don't mean to say that this is a bad thing, because, in an odd way, it gives me comfort and clarity in life. Other times the stuff I read makes me unimaginably angry. The point of this blog is that I am a hardline atheist. A lot of people seem to think that atheism is foolish, because there is no way to know whether there is a god, and therefore, its just as bad to be atheist as to be religious, in the thinking about stuff terms. Now, I readily admit that there is no way to know whether there is or is not a god. But I'm not agnostic about religion for the same reason that I am not agnostic to gravity. Let me explain. There is a popular philosophical thought experiment that says that there is a chance that gravity has only worked the way that it has by coincidence. Maybe gravity sometimes pushes objects aw...

From The Stumbling Block Today's civilized person has a tiny, cushioned view of how the world's life is suffering because of us. People have marched in masses to make it so, bulldozing all other life out of their path without care or knowledge of what they're doing to the rest of the world around them. Today's culture has created a twisted logic that supports this status quo and prevents them from having to face reason, or be made to think outside of this destructive box, constantly struggling to stay within it themselves, for not being on top is synonymous to falling off the earth. It is a world screaming for a wake up call. Visit The Stumbling Block

Sent in by Laughing Buddha I am sick and tired of one of the most worn-out arguments that Xtians use when they are dealing with people who don't believe anymore: Stop looking at imperfect people; look at 'GOD' instead. Guess what, people? I don't want to stop looking at people. Your Bible says you are supposed to be 'salt' and 'light' in the world. Your Bible says you are supposed to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. Your Bible says you are to love your enemies and turn the other cheek. In short, it's not my fault that there are all these commands in your Bible that your people can't follow. You are supposed to be, in every area of your life, what Jayzus commands. You are supposed to be the ones demonstrating for the rest of the world what 'life in Christ-almighty' is supposed to be like. You are supposed to be showing the world what a little taste of the 'kingdom of god' is all about. Don't, please, for...

Sent in by Atheist RN I am an atheist nurse, and I can honestly say that one of the saddest things that I have witnessed my patients say is, “Why does God hate me so much to give me this illness?” There are numerous Christian apologist answers to this question, of which I am sure many of you can recite chapter and verse, but what I really want people to understand is why belief is so detrimental to the health of a patient. Many people really believe that God is punishing them for some past misdeed. They take this to heart, and often wind up doing more harm to their condition by adding this additional mental stress. Did you know that this is actually considered diagnosable as a “Religious or Spiritual Problem”? See the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders” (DSM-IV-TR, code V62.89). Although some people do seem to get comfort from believing that God healed them, what about the people who never go into a remission? That is, a terminally ill patient. The preachers ...

By Brother Jeff JESUS is just so AWESOME ! I have been thinking a lot about God lately, and after the Holy Spirit convicted me of my sinfulness, I turned my life over to Christ! Again! This time it's for real and it's for good! I'll never turn my back on Him again! As for me and my cat wife Tasha, we will serve the LORD ! I am so grateful to God for the way He has been helping me at school. When I don't know something, I pray about it, and Jesus gives me a revelation! And sometimes He is right! Glory! And I know that when He is wrong it's my fault for not hearing Him correctly, or it's Satan's fault for interfering with the spiritual transmission. Man, God is so awesome! If you're not God's friend, then you are His enemy and you are going to burn in HELL forever! Jesus loves you! Shit! F**k that shit. It's hard for me to write like that anymore even joking about it. I can understand a belief in a deistic sort of god who created it all given the...

By Stronger Now I find myself thinking of all the questions I had when I was a Xtian about the stuff I read in the Bible. One that always stuck out with me was weather or not wine was a bad thing or a good thing. It was explained to me that anything that is done in excess is bad. It was also explained that the alcohol in the wine was toxic and that made it bad. I was told that wine at small doses was okay, but one should never drink to excess. I was told a great many things but never how a Christian can even get drunk. Stupid question right? Read on. Now, as any good health professional and scientist knows, ethanol is a toxic substance. It is a CNS depressant that can cause decreased motor function and, in high quantities, coma and death. This seems to be the Xtian viewpoint as well as the added "spiritual toxicity" that is also present. Most people that consume alcohol do so at levels well under the lethal level. It is a bone of contention between some Xtian denomination...

A short video by Pat Condell , which asks the question, "What do miracles and morality have to do with each other?" Some people have had trouble getting this video to load. If it happens to you, try it at: http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=dca_11... or http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseac... You can download an audio version of this video at http://patcondell.libsyn.com/ To monitor comments posted to this topic, use .

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By Bob P America loves to invent holidays in recognition of great ideas and achievements. We have at least one official holiday for nearly every occasion and dedicated to nearly every group — except atheists. At 13-14% of the population, atheist Americans number between 30-50 million, making them perhaps the largest of any single identifiable minority. Atheists comprise a larger portion of the U.S. population than Blacks, Jews, or Gays, yet because of the social stigma cast by religion, atheists are largely invisible. Or worse, they are demonized and marginalized by buybull thumping Christians who equate atheism with immorality. Such fallacy! Many, if not most of the great scientists were/are atheists or at least, deists, rejecting a personal god. Where is the Atheist day of recognition? Perhaps change is in the wind. There are at least five new books on atheism, some of which have made the bestseller list. Atheism has been a recent topic on several of the major television network...

By Dave, the WM My son was enjoying some time in a small city park near our home recently, when a scruffy middle-aged man, accompanied by a singularly obese 40ish woman, walked up and began to preach – at full volume. My son, IPOD ear buds embedded deeply in each ear canal, watched as others lounging on benches or in the grass, stirred to their feet to seek out a quieter perch. “The sins of the youth in this nation are stoking the fires of hell,” shouted the evangelist. “Repent and believe the Gospel before the time of reckoning!” My son, immune to such things from living over half his life under a strict, fundamentalist father, and the other half under a website building apostate, was entertained by the scene. He turned up his IPOD to filter out the noise, smiled pleasantly, and waited to see if there was more than one act in this show. The righteous monologue continued for another 30 minutes, the guy barely pausing for air. My son eventually decided to leave the lunatic to his rapt c...

By Bill J: Despite all the claims of healing people make in church, I never saw anyone's arm regrow because god healed them. I was at a Vineyard Christian Fellowship church in California where this guy named Paul Cain was prophesying and calling people out of the audience. He supposedly revealed things about them that god told him. Years later I found out that he is a chronic alcoholic and closet homosexual. I just don't get it. Every week there is a new charge against a religious leader in the news somewhere in this country. I'm tired of Christians telling me that you have to look at Jesus and not at man. Well, isn't man supposed to change when they find Jesus? Where's the proof. People are always claiming they spoke to god and he/she answered them, but no two people can agree on what god said. I'm shocked that religious people can't see this. What's up with that? I don't go to church because I fail to see proof of the existence of god in church. ...

Sent in by Caleb "OK, listen and listen good. I AM NOT ANGRY WITH GOD YOU SIMPLE-MINDED MOTHER-F@#%ER!" This is what I want to respond with every time one of my Christian friends explains what is really going on in my head. The following is copied straight from an e-mail I recently received: "Caleb, I am most concerned about the fragility of your heart and soul. I believe you are angry with God because of your current circumstances, and I am praying for the Lord to provide a way out, but only if you want it. Just like He says- if you are a believer- He won’t give you anything beyond what you can bear. He is waiting for you, all you have to do is call on Him, test Him and see if the floodgates do not come wide open. I will personally be held accountable for your soul so please understand these are things I must do. I will not hound you, but know that I love you and pray for you daily..." Now I know it all sounds well-meaning enough, but this person is always looki...

By DagoodS I have recently been intrigued by the Baylor Religious Survey referenced in some discussion I was observing. I found the following statistical facts fascinating: - Almost 30% had attended their current place of worship for more than 20 years. - 23% attended weekly services, but of those, only 30% attended a Bible class or Sunday School weekly. - Exactly half (49.4%) only read their Bible twice a year (or less) outside of church! - 74% felt “Forgiving” described God very well, yet 67% felt “Just” described God very well. (73% felt “loving” described God very well.) - 33.3% disagreed or strongly disagreed with an atheist teaching at high school. (Close to the 37.5% that said the same about homosexuals.) The fact that approximately 2/3 of the people thought God was both Just and Forgiving (two concepts which are mutually exclusive) made me chuckle, thinking of exactly how much thought we put into our opinion of what a God is. As I Christian, I probably would have voted the ...

Buy Books by Michael Shermer Subscribe to Skeptic magazine. Michael Shermer (born September 8 , 1954 in Glendale, California ) is a science writer, historian of science, founder of The Skeptics Society , and editor of its magazine Skeptic , which is largely devoted to investigating and debunking pseudoscientific and supernatural claims. Shermer is also the producer and co-host of the 13-hour Fox Family television series Exploring the Unknown and since April 2004 has been a monthly columnist for Scientific American magazine with his Skeptic column. Shermer was once a fundamentalist Christian , but according to his book The Science of Good and Evil , is now an agnostic and an advocate for humanist philosophy. -- Wikipedia The Colbert Report ( IPA : [kol'bɛɹ rɪˈpɔr] ) is an American satirical television program that airs from 11:30 p.m. to 12:00 a.m (10:30 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. central time) each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central . It stars comedian Stephen Colbe...

Sent in by Steven Cody I want credit for my actions. Good or bad I'd like to be acknowledged for what I do and accomplish. I'd thank all those in my life who helped me with any given situation of course. I want to be acknowledged as a human being who deserves better than what we have. We ALL deserve better. I am a human and so are you. We make choices and decisions every second of every waking hour of every single day of our lives. WE are responsible for the lives and deaths of our fellow human beings with every choice we make. We, as human beings, have total control over everything that happens on this planet. WE are responsible. I wish everyone could see and hear and understand what I'm telling you. Sadly, even though many will agree with me, still more will not hear me. We have ultimate control, but I think we got scared of all the responsibility -- so we out sourced it to an invisible bully in the sky. This will be the part where I think I'll lose a large majority o...

A defense of atheism using the null hypothesis . When used, the null hypothesis is presumed true until statistical evidence in the form of a hypothesis test indicates otherwise. In classical science, the null hypothesis is used to test differences in treatment and control groups, and the assumption at the outset of the experiment is that no difference exists between the two groups for the variable being compared. To monitor comments posted to this topic, use .